Material hauling and dispensing



Oct. 16, 1951 c WESTON 7 Re. 23,430

MATERIAL HANDLING AND DISPENSING VEHICLE v 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed Feb. 6, 194'? Oct. 16, 1951 c. J. WESTON MATERIAL HANDLING AND DISPENSING VEHICLE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed Feb. 6, 1947 dwezz/or Eiarezzce J 2 /292022 Reissued Oct. 16, 1 951 MATERIAL HAULING AND DISPENSIN VEHICLE Clarence J. Weston, deceased, late of Des Moines, Iowa, by Wilma J. Weston and H. Allen Weston, assignees by decree of distribution, Des Moines,

Iowa

Original No. 2,517,151, dated August 1, .1950, Serial No. 726,901, February 6, 1947. Application for reissue November 2'7, 1950', Serial No, 197,820

Matter enclosed in heavy brackets lClaim. (c1. 214-8318) appears in the original patent but forms no part of t reissue specification; matter printed in italics indicates the additions made by reissue.

This invention relates to vehicles primarily used for hauling and spreading fertilizing materials such as lime or like over fields.

The principal object, therefore, of [my] the invention is to provide a highly efiicient and durable apparatus for hauling and spreading materials over surfaces in need of such materials.

A still further object of [my] the invention is to provicle a material hauling vehicle that will dump the load being hauled at a given location, or if desired, will automatically disperse the material over a wide area while the vehicle is in movement.

A- still further object of [my] the invention is to provide a material spreading apparatus that may be easily and quickly adjusted to spread a given amount of material over a given area.

A still further object of [my] the invention is to provide a material dispenser and spreader that disperses the material from a low point above the surface to be treated.

- Still further objects of [my] the invention are to provide a material hauling and dispensing vehicle that is economical in manufacture and refined in appearance. 7

These and other objects will be apparent those skilled in the art.

The [My] invention consists in the construction, arrangement and combination of the various par-ts of the device, whereby the objects contemplated are attained as hereinafter more. fully set forth, pointed out in [my] the claim and illustrated in the accompanying drawings,v in

which: I

Fig.-1 is a side view of [my] the vehicle ready for use; r

Fig. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of a rotatably mounted material spreader;

' 3 is a rear end view of [my] the vehicle;

Fig. 4 is .a' side-sectional view of a portion of the .rear end portion of [my] the vehicle and more fully illustrates its construction; and

, Fig, 5 is a cross-sectional view of the hopper box portion taken on line .5-5 of Fig. 4.

Material hauling and spreading vehicles are old the art. .Such vehicles are used to spread lime and like fertilizers over fields and for spreading materials on roadways, The main objection to .such devices, however, is that they permit only one way of disposing of the material being hauled. Obviously, in some situations it is desirable that the material be thrown horizontally from the hauling vehicle in order to cover a large area. and in other instances it may be desirable to dump the load of material in a given spot for future 7 a 2 Y use. or spread in a narrow path between the wheels of the vehicle as the vehicle progresses. [My] The vehicle is capable of hauling the material, spreading it over a wide area, or dumping the material, or causing it to deposit in an elon gated row. In the drawings, [I have used] the numeral ii has been used to designate an ordinary automotive vehicle and chassis; It is to such a chassis that the device is installed and which will now be described [I install my device and which ,I will now describe] in detail. The numeral I I designates the vehicle material hauling box having its two sides I2 and 13. ex-tend'ing downwardly and inwardly and terminating in a bottomopening which extends substantially the entire center length of the box II. The numeral I4 designates a rigid irame secured to and supporting the lower edges of the hopper box walls I2 and I3. This rigid frame extends the length of the bottom of the box and protrudes beyond the rear end of the box, as hown in Fig. 4. The numerals J5 and I6 designate doors facing each other and hinged at their outer sides to the frame M, as shown in Fig. 5. These doors I5 and I6, when in closed positions, close the longitudinal opening in the bottom of the box, but when swu downwardly and outwardly, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 5, they provide the elongated longitudinal outlet slot for the vehicle box. The numeral I1 designates a plurality of U-shaped crank shafts rotatably mounted in the frame I and under the outlet doors I5 and I6. When these crank shafts I! are rotated to an inverted position, as shown in Fig. 5, they will raise and support the doors I5 and tin a closed position, but when rotated away from this direction, per-.- mit the doors I5 and I6 to open. The numeral I8 designates a link rigidly secured to each of the crank shafts I1. The numeral I9 designates a double bar pivoted to each of the members I8, as shown in Fig. 4. The numeral 20 designates a link hingedly secured at one end to the member 19 and its other end hingedly secured to the hand lever 2|, which is in turn hingedly secured at one end to the box frame, as shown in Fig. 4. The handle 2| and link 20 are so positioned and arranged that when the lever 2| is moved rearwardly to close the doors I5 and I6 the lever is tripped past center, thereby holding the crank shaft I] in an inverted upright position; The numeral .22 designates a second hand lever hingedly secured to the vehicle frame and having an engaging lug 23 capable of engaging the under ide of the lever 21. As the pivot point of the 3 lever 22'-is between the pivot point of the lever 2| andtlie link 20 the' downward movement of the lever 22 will raise the lever 2| past'its past center locked position. With the lever 2| forward, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 4, the crank shaft I! will lie-rotated to a lowered position permitting the doors I and IE to drop. By this arrangement, the doors I5 and I6 maybe manually opened or closed. The numerals 24 and 25 designate strengthening strips on the bottom free ends of the doors I5 and I6 and ride on the crank shafts when they are in an elevated position. The member 25 extends beyond the free edge of the member IS in order to close any gap that may exist between the free edges of the doors. In order that the door I5 will raise first and not jam with the member 25, [I have] there has been provided. a small lug 23'on each of the crank shafts which causes thedoor I-5 to close slightly prior to .the door IS. The numeral 21 designates a rotatably mounted endless chain conveyor riding on" the frame I4 and embracing the doors I5 and I6 and crank shafts II. This endless conveyor is of the conventional slat type and is actuated by the drive shaft 23. The numeral 23 designates a skirt secured to the rear end portion of the frame I4 and around which the conveyor operates}, at its rear end, as shown in Fig. 4. By this construction, when the doors I5 and I8 are in closed position and the endless conveyor is actuated, material will be moved from the box rearwardly on the doors I5 and I6 and thence onto and from the curved skirt 29. The numeral 3|! designates a shaft rotatably mounted to the frame, of the apparatus and operatively connected to. the power take-off of the internal combustion engine of the Vehicle, as shown in Fig. 1. The numeral 3| designates a gear box and gears oper-v atively connecting the shaft 28 to the shaft 30. The numeral. 32 designates the material spreading frame secured to the lower rear end portion of the vehicle box. The numeral 33 designates the horizontal material spreading disc having vertical curved blades 34 on its top surface and [is as follows. The doors 42. I Sand I8 are closed and the material to be hauled and distributed is 42 is moved upwardly to permit the conveyor to -move material rearwardly and under it. With the vehicle in motion and the shaft 35' rotatin the material will be moved rearwardly by the I conveyor and will .fall on the rapidly rotating rotatably mounted on the frame 32. This mem- .The numeral 35 designates a rotatably mounted shaft on the frame 32 and carrying a sprocket gear 35. The numeral 31 designates a sprocket gear on the shaft 30. The numeral 38 designates an endless chain embracing the sprocket gears 36 and 31. The numeral 39 designates a friction clutch imposed in the shaft 35. The numeral 40 designates a gear box and gears operatively connecting the shaft 35 to the rotatably mounted disc plate 33. The numeral 4| designates an opening in the rear of the box II. The numeral 42 designates a vertically raisable and closable door on the rear end of the box capable ofadjustably closing the opening 4|. The numeral 43 designates a lever pivoted near its center to the box and one of its ends pivotally connected to a link 44 which in turn is pivotally connected to the door 42. By this arrangement, when the free end of the member 43 is manually actuated the door will be adjustably opened or closed. To hold the door in any desired position of its elevation, [I have] there has been provided a block 45 having a series of pin receiving holes 45. These holes are capable of individuall receiving the pin 41 which engages the top of the member 43 to hold it in selected positions, as shown in Fig. 3.

The practical operation of li yl'thc apparatus member 33 where it is struck by the vanes 34 and spread horizontally over a wide area. The amount of material spread over a given area will depend upon the adjusted elevated position of the door 42.' If it is not desired to spread the material over a wide area it is merely necessary to open the doors I5 and I3 and the material will drop directly downwardly between the-wheels of the vehicle. If the vehicle is moving the material will be deposited in an elongated ridge depending upon how wide the door I5 and I5 are opened. If the vehicle is stopped and the doors I5 and IB'opened all of the material will be deposited under the vehicle. If it is desired, on the other hand, to adjustably feed the material out of the rear end of the vehicle and not spread it, his merely necessary to keep the doors I5 and I5 closed and remove the chain 38.- From the foregoing, it will be seen that with a single apparatus, [I have] there has been provided a number of ways of dispensing the material.

Some changes may be made in the construction .and arrangement of [my] the improved material hauling and dispensing vehiclewithout departing from the real spirit and purpose of [my] the invention, and it is [my intention] intended to cover by [my] the claim any modifled forms of structure or use of mechanical equivalents which maybe reasonably included within its scope. v

[I claimz] What is claimed is:

In a device of the class described, a material hopper designed to be mounted on a. vehicle and having its two side walls extending downwardly and sloping inwardly and terminatingin an elongated opening, a rigid frame comprising parallel side walls [welded] afiixed to the sloping sides of the hopper adjacent the elongated opening. two depending doors pivoted to the parallel wall adjacent opposite edges of the opening and capabio of being moved upwardly toward each other to close the bottom of the hopper, a pair of offset crank shafts rotatably mounted within the frame member in a position below the pivoted doors and capable: of engaging the under sides of said doors for progressively controlling them into and out of closed positions with the bottom of the hopper, a lever means for actuating said crank shafts-said side walls [terminating at their lower edges in]. each having an inturned [flanges which provides] flange at its lower edge to provide a track, and a rotatably mounted endless chain open-type conveyor embracing said doors and said crank shafts and supported and guided on said' tracks, means for driving the conveyor lengthwise of the hopper, [the opposite ends] one end of the hopper having an adjustable opening[s] forv free passage of the endless conveyor, said conveyor having one of its end portions extending from and out of the said hopper.

' WILMA J. WESTON.

H. ALLEN WESTON. Assignees of the. Estate of Clarence-J. Weston,

Deceased.

(References no follow me) REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent or the original patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date Campbell et a1. Oct. 18, 1892 Koob Sept. 26, 1905 Parrish Jan. 4, 1916 10 Number 6 Name Date Peterson Feb. 22, 1921 Ruth Sept. 27, 1932 Kutscha Oct. 3, 1933 Hofistetter Aug. 25, 1942 Blackwelder et a1. Nov. 17, 1942 Hoffstetter Feb. 1, 1944 Werts June 29, 1946 

